Growing my Reseda Rising Initiative, I’m excited to join local artists and community members to kick off its newest manifestation — the Reseda Mural Festival. It will be the first and biggest installation of multiple murals ever in the San Fernando Valley. In partnership with arts non-profit 11:11 Projects, six large murals are being painted by local artists throughout Reseda over this weekend from 9am-5pm and everyone is invited to see the work in progress. In some cases, the community will be invited to participate in the painting.
The largest of the murals will be located on the side of the iconic Reseda Theater (3000 sq ft) and will include parts painted by 15 local artists. It will depict different facets of the San Fernando Valley, ranging from indigenous iconography, to local ecology, to female and youth empowerment, to Earth conservation. Other locations include ONEgeneration Senior Enrichment Center, Reseda Elementary, CDI, Bertrand Elementary, and more.
Check out some of these works in progress this weekend and to find out more on the artists and specific locations, please visit resedarisingmuralfest.com.
Update from the Budget Committee
Right now, the City Council’s Budget and Finance Committee, of which Blumenfield is Vice-Chair, is reviewing the Mayor’s annual budget and holding hearings with every general manager. Every line of each our of City’s budget is being analyzed. As he wrote in last week’s newsletter, Blumenfield helped secure tentative funding for projects including for major park improvements, public safety efforts like extending the MRCA along the LA River, and money for West Valley infrastructure projects.
This week the committee heard from some of the city’s key departments including LAFD, LAPD, Housing as well as LA Homeless Services Authority (which is a joint authority between the County of LA and the City of LA). Homelessness and Public Safety are always the two top priorities per Blumenfield’s annual Budget Survey and with a City budget of well over $11 billion dollars, each and every cent is critical to providing more services and supporting our communities. This is a duty he takes very seriously and he is continuing to fight for more funds to help the West Valley. (If you haven’t yet taken Blumenfield’s Budget survey you can still do so by clicking here).
As LA is the only one of the 88 cities in Los Angeles County that funds LAHSA, Councilmember Blumenfield is examining closely the City’s financial contributions to LAHSA and the services we are receiving in return. With the City investing over $1B in homelessness and with LAHSA having grown to a 600+ staff, Blumenfield has been closely examining LAHSA’s funding request for more staff. CM Blumenfield also sought to secure funding for the Tarzana Treatment Center who assists patients experiencing homelessness who end up in the emergency room find housing to detox, recuperate and start on the road to recovery.
You can see this week’s meetings here or you can tune into Ch 35 next Tuesday at 1pm or Thursday at 9am to watch the next two meetings live.
As Chair of the Council’s Public Works Committee, Blumenfield is always exploring innovations to help make infrastructure projects more efficient. One of the many fields he has been focused on is how to ensure that projects which need to be cut into streets are less invasive and cheaper to deliver. Many of these innovations have been driven by Blumenfield’s earlier efforts to insure that when private companies do have to cut into the street they pay for the full cost - no more, no less - of the damage caused to the street by such a cut. This has created a strong incentive for innovation.
This week, he was in Warner Center with Vahid Khorsand (former Team Blumenfield staffer and current Board of Public Works Commissioner) and Deputy City Engineer Ted Allen to visit a Crown Castle crew that was installing new fiber-optic cable in a narrow, shallow channel. If successful, this new method will cause less damage to streets; fewer lane closures and shorter in duration; and cost less. This could be an important tool in expanding the fiber-optic network that serves the City of Los Angeles, helping expand internet access and reduce the digital divide.
Councilmember Blumenfield was happy to provide bus transportation to youth groups in Council District Three. Recently, YouthBuild students were able to go to YouthBuild Day and connect with other YouthBuild students from Southern California while 50 students from Multicultural Learning Center in Canoga Park visited Griffith Park and the Hollywood sign.
To assist nonprofits, schools, and senior organizations in his district, Councilmember Blumenfield sets aside a limited amount of funds each year to provide special bus transportation to events or outings. He does this to encourage groups that might otherwise have access issues to take advantage of educational, cultural, and recreational opportunities in the area.
If you would like to be considered for a bus donation from Councilmember Blumenfield this year, let us know six weeks in advance and sign up at blumenfield.lacity.org/bus.
Councilmember Blumenfield’s partnership with the Los Angeles Conservation Corps (LACC) continues to deliver results. Young Corpsmembers work hard each day to keep our communities clean. A few years ago Blumenfield allocated funds to LACC to specifically address needs in the district and he's grateful always to see their progress.
If you see unmitigated greenery, excess trash, bulky items, graffiti, etc, call 818.774.4330 or email [email protected] and we'll send a team out.
Councilmember Blumenfield stopped by Franklin's Ace Hardware to celebrate their 70th Anniversary. Since 1952, Franklin's Ace Hardware has been a staple in the community and Blumenfield was proud to recognize the Kurzeka Family and employees for their unwavering commitment to providing outstanding customer service and a wide variety of quality home improvement materials.
Team Blumenfield wore jeans with a purpose for Denim Day and stood in solidarity with victims of sexual assault. There is no excuse and never an invitation to harass, abuse or assault, rape. No matter what a victim wears, they are never complicit in their sexual assault.
This week's photo from the Los Angeles Public Library's archives is from the Valley Times on March 7, 1961. Ridgewood Military Academy cadets observe "Plant a Tree Week" by setting out cypress trees on their school campus in Woodland Hills. Learn more about this photo here.